Episode 16 (Manga)
Synopsis Casca dreams of her first encounter with Griffith. He tells her that whether she joins him or not is her own decision. Before she can make her choice, Casca wakes up. Casca rolls over and sees Guts squatting at the mouth of the cave, having just wet a piece of cloth for her use. She notices that, during the night, he also covered her in a blanket of leaves. He informs her of their situation. Casca moves to get up, only for Guts to encourage her to stay put. Her movement displaces the leaves, and she notices that she has been stripped. Despite Guts' attempts to explain, she punches him in the face and pelts him with the pieces of their armor. Guts reacts aggressively, telling Casca that if it weren't for the fact that she is a woman, he would punch her back. His words recall her earlier conversation with Adon, and Casca begins to tear up, saying that being born a woman wasn't her choice. Noticing his words have hurt her, Guts tries to console her, only to be attacked again. He manages to subdue her easily and gives her his dry shirt for her to wear. They sit in opposite ends of their small cave. Casca laments that of all the people who could have saved her, it had to be Guts. He asks why she ever joined the Band of the Falcon, and Casca gives her answer in the form of a story. She tells of her origins in a small, isolated village, which was heavily taxed and devoid of food, having to go days on end without eating being a common occurrence. The village was often ransacked by enemy soldiers due to its proximity to the border. One day, a nobleman caught sight of Casca, and he offered her parents a large sum of money for her purchase. Her parents agreed, and Casca was shipped off to live with the nobleman. On route, however, he made unwanted advances. Casca escaped out of the carriage they were in, but the man quickly caught and pinned her to the ground. Before she could be taken advantage of, the man's ear was sliced off. Griffith, her savior who sat atop his white horse, looked down on the nobleman and Casca. Instead of simply killing the nobleman, Griffith tossed his sword to Casca, whom he instructed to save herself. Casca did so, stabbing the nobleman with the sword. Griffith then calmed her shaking hands, and Casca developed an admiration for her rescuer. Judeau rode to them and informed Griffith that he, Corkus and Pippin, the first members of the Band of the Falcon, were finished searching the nobleman's carriage for loot. As the Falcons made to leave, Casca impulsively asked to join them. Despite the other Falcons' reluctance to taking a young girl with them, Griffith told Casca to do as she wanted, and they wound up integrating her into their group. Griffith commented that she now knew how to fight, but the young Casca reflected that it was Griffith who provided her with her sword in the first place. Characters in Order of Appearance * Griffith * Casca * Guts * Verneau * Judeau * Corkus * Pippin